This month we introduce a new members only series – NYWIFT ExperTEAs! This program is designed to connect you with an expert in your field and help you meet others on the same path to career success.

Our first guest in the series is director Lucy Walker. Share a cup of tea and conversation with this accomplished industry professional who will speak candidly about her road to achievement and the lessons she's learned along the way. You’ll have the opportunity to ask Lucy questions, as well as network with fellow members in a friendly and intimate setting.

Lucy Walker's documentaries have won over 50 film awards, and she has twice been nominated for an Academy Award: first for Waste Land (2010), a documentary feature which won over 30 honors, including audience awards at both the Sundance and Berlin film festivals; and a year later for The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (2011), about survivors of Japan’s 2011 tsunami, which also won the nonfiction jury prize at Sundance.

Her three previous feature documentaries are Devil's Playground (2002), Blindsight (2006) and Countdown to Zero (2010). Blindsight, about blind Tibetan students climbing Everest, premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and won prizes at Berlin and other festivals. Countdown to Zero, about nuclear weapons, premiered at Sundance and played as an Official Selection at Cannes. Devil's Playground, about Amish teenagers, premiered at Sundance and was nominated for three Emmys (Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Editing) and an Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary. She has also been nominated for two Emmys for Outstanding Directing for Nickelodeon's Blue's Clues.

Lucy grew up in London, England, and graduated from Oxford University before winning a Fulbright scholarship to attend the Graduate Film Program at NYU. She began her career by directing theater and musical theater, winning awards at Oxford for her productions. While living in New York, she also had a career as a DJ.
The Crash Reel, her new feature documentary set in the world of professional snowboarding, made its debut as the Salt Lake Opening Night Gala film at Sundance in January 2013.

Produced by Octavia Taylor.

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NYWIFT programs, screenings and events

are supported, in part, by grants from New York City Department of

Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and New York

State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and